Hand in Hand 手拉手 @ JEM

Hand in Hand Beijing Roast Duck Restaurant is one of four restaurants in the chain that specialises in Beijing and Shandong dishes.

The restaurant has a really cheesy name and took over from another Chinese restaurant in the same location. This has not given us any confidence given the low quality of the previous joint.

But we spotted some dishes that we wanted to try, so we decided to risk it.

蒜泥猪脚冻 Pig Trotter in Gelatine with Garlic Sauce

For starter, we ordered something that is familiar to Teochews, pig trotter in gelatine with garlic sauce 蒜泥猪脚冻. Most restaurant would not boil the collagen from the trotters to form the jelly as it is extremely time consuming and uses a lot of pig trotters. They would add gelatine to form the terrine like in this case.

传统挂炉烤鸭 Peking Duck

This is their signature dish, Peking duck done the traditional way with popiah (wheat flour) skin instead of egg skin that most used today. The set came with all the condiments – sweet sauce, sugar, cucumber strips and shredded leeks.

The skin was shiny and crispy, but the duck meat was quite dry. I suspected that the duck was precooked in a central kitchen and the refried in the restaurant. It did not have any smokiness so I am skeptical that it was roasted over wood fire.

鸭架炖白菜豆腐汤 Duck Bone Stewed Cabbage Tofu Soup

The bones of the Peking duck are usually used as a second course – the duck bone stewed cabbage tofu soup.

Nothing too delicious, more like a quick boil soup with some tofu and Chinese cabbage. I regretted not choosing the other option – sautéed duck rack.

毛血旺 Sichuan Spicy Offals Casserole

This is a Sichuan dish made with super hot chilli oil and beef tripes, pork intestines, duck blood jelly, luncheon meat and bean sprouts. Upon studying the menu, I was not so convinced that the chef can make a Mao Xue Wang 毛血旺, especially duck blood jerry is not available in Singapore.

I specifically asked if they had duck blood jelly 鸭血 and they said it was special black bean tofu. I decided to try and I did not regret the decision. The black bean tofu had the same texture as duck blood jelly, and the rest of the casserole tasted legit.

干锅手撕包菜腊肉 Griddled Cooked Cabbage with Bacon

Although the Chinese name mentioned “hand torn”, the cabbage was anything but manually manipulated. Bacon is also another misnomer for this dish, it’s more like Chinese sausage or dried meat. I just didn’t like the vinegary taste, typical of how it is done in Beijing.

韭菜猪肉虾仁锅贴 Pork, Shrimp and Chives Pot Sticklers

Pot sticklers 锅贴 are always a crowd-pleaser. Eight huge pieces per order, they were crispy on the belly side and soft like dumpling on the top.

I wished it was crispier, but it was good enough.

韭菜猪肉水饺 Pork and Chives Dumplings

They were big, Shandong-style dumplings with generous filling and thick skin. Very fulfilling, and a meal on its own.

Overall, we had a good dining experience at Hand in Hand; the service was attentive and friendly, the ambiance was bright and cheering, and the food was value for money. Downside? None for that price point.

Hand in Hand Beijing Roast Duck 手拉手北京烤鸭
#03 – 23, Jem, 50, Jurong Gateway Rd, Jurong East, Singapore, SG
Tel : +65 96960839

Visited Sep 2024